


In Love, Also

by kamicchis



Category: THE iDOLM@STER
Genre: Anime: The iDOLM@STER SideM, Coming Out, Gen, M/M, No mention of producer's gender, POV Second Person, Polyamory, Self-Insert, SideM, free for interpretation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-09
Updated: 2018-12-09
Packaged: 2019-09-14 14:38:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16914753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kamicchis/pseuds/kamicchis
Summary: As SEM's dedicated producer, they trust you with their personal relations.





	In Love, Also

**Author's Note:**

> I've never written in 2nd person before, so I wanted to give it a shot before I write anything serious! Just a quick 2 hour drabble. 
> 
> As always, italicized text in Rui's dialogue is English.

It was early... far too early.

 

But being awake at this hour couldn’t be helped. You left the office early the previous night, promising yourself that you’d finish sorting out time tables in the morning. Ken assured you that he’d help you out; but you noticed the dark crescents under his eyes lately. It was the weekend, and you told Ken to get some extra rest. You could handle something as simple as arranging spreadsheets and taking SEM to their 9am rehearsal across the city. Those were the only tasks written down in your planner for the day.

 

In the newfound life of a producer, you supposed this could be considered a vacation day also.

 

The trio of former teachers were always easy to work with, and you couldn’t help but find yourself always looking forward to the days you were able to see them. Sometimes you felt like you rely on them more than they rely on you. But, ultimately, that’s what motivated you to show up several hours ahead of time to catch up on your work. They worked so hard, you couldn't help but feel caught up in the inspiration they tried to achieve among their fans as well.

 

You fumbled with your keys as you approached the door to the 315 productions building. In your other hand, clad with a soft pink knit mitten, you held a cup of coffee. Normally on the days when you worked alongside SEM, dropping in at the coffee shop down the street wasn’t necessary, as Michio was always the first to greet you warmly with a fresh cup when you entered the office. He knew exactly how you liked your coffee too--almost as if he was your own barista. But considering their practice wasn’t for another several hours, you made sure to pick something up on your way. Over your elbow was a brown paper bag, and inside were a few fresh pastries you picked up from the bakery next door to the coffee shop. They weren’t for yourself, as tempting as they were, but for after rehearsal. Or  _before_  rehearsal, as Rui would try and insist, if he caught a glimpse at his favourite kind of macaroon that you were always sure to grab for him when you went to the bakery. After a good minute of attempting to fish your keys out from your pocket, you finally grabbed a firm hold of them. Pushing the building door open, you sighed as the warm, quiet air of the stairwell greeted you. You kept the keys handy as you hurried up the stairs, finding yourself at the all too familiar front door of the production office.

 

As you wiped your shoes on the mat, you were surprised to hear the faint murmur of voices coming from inside. You could recognize those voices anywhere; and you had a brief moment of panic as to what time it actually was. Were you actually running late? Did daylight savings suddenly change this year and no one had told you? Ridiculous scenarios ran through your head as you wedged the key into the door lock, and peaked inside.

 

“Producer-chan!  _Good morning!_ ”

 

You blinked. There was no doubt that it was the members of SEM that you had heard from behind the closed door, but actually seeing them sitting in the lounge area was still surprising. Rui clearly heard you struggling with the door, as he was already leaning over the back of the chair with the brightest of smiles to offer you.

 

“Rui… good morning.” You nodded, hanging up your coat. You noticed Michio and Jiro were sitting around also. Jiro looked dead tired, even more so than usual. Michio sat with his legs crossed, holding a cup of coffee. He looked at you warmly.

 

“Good morning, producer.” Michio spoke in his usual, calm tone. “It’s early. I hope you got enough sleep?”

 

Nodding slowly, you walked over to the seating area. Normally you’d head straight for your office, especially since you got here so early for the sake of catching up on your work, but it was clear that something was off. It seemed that they were sitting around waiting for you.

 

“I did. A-Aah, but, rehearsal isn’t until 9am? It’ll only take half an hour to drive there.” You started, but then began to doubt yourself. “Unless I wrote it down wrong?” You wouldn’t put it past yourself. “L-Let me double check!”

 

“No, no. Don’t worry.” Jiro said finally, standing up with a soft chuckle. He reached out to take your laptop bag, as well as the pastry bag hooked over your other arm. You nodded your thanks as he put them down on the empty chair, then moved to take a seat beside Michio, allowing you to sit down on the couch across from them. “We’re the ones that are early. Hazama-san insisted that you’d be here at this hour, so we figured it would be a good time to catch you before you get... too caught up in scheduling.”

 

Michio nodded. “I apologize for taking up your time, producer.”

 

“Eh? It’s fine… is something the matter?” You asked, tilting your head. You were slightly concerned now. “That’s my top priority, either way.” You reassured them regardless of the nervousness you felt. Even Rui was being quiet as Michio spoke.

 

“It’s…” Michio started, then faded off.

 

Jiro scoffed, placing his hand on Michio’s knee. He squeezed it and shook him slightly. “That’s one way to scare someone, Hazama-san.” He chuckled, then turned to look at you. “We’re not quitting or anything, please don’t worry.”

 

Your shoulders sunk in relief. You didn’t even realize that was something you were so worried about, but it felt like a weight was lifted off of your chest. Thank goodness.

 

“We just wanted to talk to you about something, producer-chan.” Rui cut in, smiling. He was seated in the chair to your left, actually sitting down properly now. “ _Don’t worry_ , Mister Hazama is just  _nervous!_ ”

 

You blinked in surprise. Suddenly, you were worried about him more than anything. Did something happen? “What is it? Is everything okay?” Automatically your mind rushed to assumption that maybe he was sick, or that he’d injured himself. They had a live concert one week from now, so that was a definite cause for concern.

 

Michio swallowed thickly. “I apologize from keeping this from you for so long.” He started, then faded off quietly. You stared at him, wondering what he could possibly be sorry for. “All of us… we all apologize. This shouldn’t have been a secret for as long as it was.”

 

Jiro nodded slowly, giving Michio a reassuring pat on the shoulder. It was clear that his touch was a source of comfort, as Michio seemed to muster up the words to carry on.

 

“The last thing we want to do is cause trouble for you, producer. So I realize that telling you directly is the most plausible choice of action.”  

 

“ _Yes!_ ” Rui added. “It’s because we  _trust you_ , producer-chan! Right, Mister Hazama, Mister Yamashita?”

 

“We’ve been nothing but trouble for you these past few months…” Jiro chuckled, continuing to rub Michio’s back. The former math teacher looked incredibly dazed; something that was beyond bizarre for him. “Haven’t we, Hazama-san? Go ahead. Let’s not trouble the producer any further.”

 

Sitting up straight, Michio met your gaze. It wasn’t any harsher than usual, but given the rising tension in the room, it made your stomach knot. You swallowed nervously. “You can trust me with anything.” You reassured them, smiling gently. You reached across the table to give Michio a pat on the knee. “I’m your producer, afterall.”

 

Michio nodded slowly, his gaze sliding back down to the wooden surface of the coffee table that separated you.

 

“Maita-kun and Yamashita-kun...” Michio said slowly. “I love them.”

 

You didn’t think much of this, at first, but you  _were_  surprised to hear Michio speak of his fondness in such a forward manner.

 

He continued on. “And I’m thankful to say that they love me also.”

 

Jiro let out a breath of laughter through his nose at Michio’s phrasing. “Since our days as teachers, we’ve been in a relationship. All three of us.”

 

Oh...

 

_...Oh!_

 

You were left flabbergasted. You had opened your mouth to speak, but couldn’t find the words. Either way, Rui cut you off.

 

“ _Yes!_  That’s right!”

 

“I know that pertaining such relations while an idol is frowned upon.” Michio spoke slowly. “Especially... with other idols. For that, we’re sorry, producer. We should have told you sooner.”  


Silence hung in the air for a long moment.

 

“Producer-chan?”

 

“I don’t know how you expected me to react.” You went on. You hardly had the time to register these thoughts, so what you spoke was the absolute, heartfelt truth. “But thank-you for trusting me enough to tell me.”

 

They were all silent, and had the same look of disbelief; like three deer caught in the headlights, and you had to keep yourself from laughing.

 

“Your secret is safe with me.” You assured them gently. It was finally starting to register with you, and all you felt was happiness for them. Of course there was always the concern of a scandal if anything was caught by the media--but it had gone undetected for so long already… even by yourself.  “As your producer, it’s my job to protect you guys, after all.” You smiled. “And I’ll be here to support you no matter what.”

 

Michio smiled ever so slightly, and Jiro let out a sigh of relief.

 

“Sorry about all of this...” Jiro rubbed the back of his neck gingerly. He seemed embarrassed now.  

 

You can’t recall exactly when Rui stood up, but before you knew it he was seated beside you and had his arms wrapped around you in a tight embrace. “ _Thank-you_ , producer-chan!” He exclaimed, rocking you in his arms for a quick, but sweet moment. You were dazed, and felt Rui’s cheek press against the top of your head as he turned his gaze to Michio. “See! I told you everything would be _fine_ . Producer-chan will  _take care of us!_ ”

 

“Pardon us for the trouble, producer.” Michio said. And before he dipped his head in a polite bow, you couldn’t help but notice the small smile tugging at his lips. “We’ll be in your care.”


End file.
